Straw
Straw , transitive verb
Straw , noun
[Old English straw, stre, stree, Anglo-Saxon streáw, from the root of English strew; akin to OFries. strē, Dutch stroo, German stroh, Old High German strō, Icelandic strā, Danish straa, Swedish strå. r166. See Strew.]
1.
A stalk or stem of certain species of grain, pulse, etc., especially of wheat, rye, oats, barley, more rarely of buckwheat, beans, and pease.
2.
The gathered and thrashed stalks of certain species of grain, etc.; as, a bundle, or a load, of rye straw.
3.
Anything proverbially worthless; the least possible thing; a mere trifle.
I set not a straw by thy dreamings.
Straw is often used in the formation of self-explaining compounds; as, straw-built, straw-crowned, straw-roofed, straw-stuffed, and the like.
Collocations (8)
Man of straw , an effigy formed by stuffing the garments of a man with straw; hence, a fictitious person; an irresponsible person; a puppet.
Straw bail , worthless bail, as being given by irresponsible persons. [Colloquial United States]
Straw bid , a worthless bid; a bid for a contract which the bidder is unable or unwilling to fulfill. [Colloquial United States]
Straw cat (Zoology) , the pampas cat.
Straw color , the color of dry straw, being a delicate yellow.
Straw drain , a drain filled with straw.
Straw plait or Straw plat , a strip formed by plaiting straws, used for making hats, bonnets, etc.
To be in the straw , to be brought to bed, as a pregnant woman. [Slang]